BirdLife International and the East African Community have joined forces to promote the protection of the environment, conservation of key transboundary ecosystems, and sustainable utilization of natural resources in the Eastern Africa region.

Under the new partnership, BirdLife International and the East African Community will collaborate in, among others:

a) Protection, conservation and sustainable management of critical transboundary ecosystems, including wetlands, lakes and forests. This will involve generating and availing information necessary for decision making on the sites, species, ecosystem services and landscapes that require conservation and management, what approaches would be appropriate for each situation and how stakeholders from the local communities, government, private sector and civil society can be brought on board.

b) Implementation and monitoring of specific projects to address degradation of natural resources and ecosystems, empowerment of stakeholders of riparian states, including local communities to participate in natural resources management; and generation of sustainable, tangible and equitably shared benefits;

c) Information sharing including tools, best practices and guidance that support sustainable management of ecosystems and natural resources and knowledge and skills exchange within East Africa among Government agencies, private sector, civil society organisations and local communities;

d) Capacity building for the sustainable management of the environment, natural resources and critical ecosystems, especially where transboundarymanagement of resources is necessary.

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The partnership was announced during the Pearl of Africa International Tourism Expo byHon. Jesca Eriyo,Deputy Secretary General, Productive and Social Sectors of the East African Community and Ms Patricia Zurita,Chief Executive Officer of BirdLife International,. They signed a Memorandum of Understanding between the two organisations at an auspicious occasion attended by over 200 people including the Chairman and the Executive Director of Nature Uganda (BirdLife in Uganda) and witnessed by Hon. Shem Bageine, Uganda’s Minister of State in charge of East African Affairs.

“The East African Community recognizes the important role of Civil Society Organisations in delivering its mandate to achieve fast, balanced and sustainable development of the region including conservation of the environment”, said Hon. Jesca Eriyo. “This partnership brings valuable experience of BirdLife International in addressing the challenges of balancing local and national interests with the regional aspirations in order to attain truly sustainable development.”

BirdLife has led participatory development of high level strategic plans for the rational management of biodiversity in the region taking into account key ecosystem services. The first one targets the Eastern Afromontane Biodiversity Hotspot and the second one considers the watersheds in the Great Lakes region. These strategies are guiding the Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund and the MacArthur Foundation in investing millions of dollars in the region for periods ranging from five to tenyears.

BirdLife is active on the ground addressing the sustainable management of transboundary ecosystems in the region. For example, over the past seven years, BirdLife together with other stakeholders have been engaging with the governments of Kenya and Tanzania to promote sustainable development of Lake Natron and its catchment. Through detailed valuation and cost-benefit studies, and awareness raising on the long term costs and benefits of different development options, a potentially very damaging soda ash extraction project on Lake Natron was averted in favour of improved tourism and pastoralism.

“I urge the parties to take seriously the responsibilities agreed today, particularly in as far as they relate to sustainability and equity in the use of the region’s abundant natural resources,” said Hon. Shem Bageine, Uganda’s Minister of State in charge of East African Affairs. “We owe it to our people now, as well as the future generations”, he concluded.